臺灣地區李鐵拐信仰考源及其文化意涵探析

華人民間社會在喜慶場合中，經常出現「八仙」組合的戲曲、裝飾，而該組合中，晚明文壇領袖王世貞（1526–1590）認為七人身分可考，難以界定者則是李鐵拐，清人趙翼（1727–1814）更因史傳未載而加以否定。然而，李鐵拐信仰卻隨先民由大陸原鄉傳入臺灣，與呂祖成為臺灣地區八仙組合唯二「單一主祀神」的情況，值得加以研究。本文運用文獻研究、現地調查、深度訪談等方法，得出在涉及李鐵拐的雜劇、小說出現前，南宋道教金丹宗派已有將東華帝君視為「姓李」、「鐵拐都仙教主」之舉，清代更有兩個同屬全真道的宗派，對李鐵拐有著不同的身分界定，可見道教的李鐵拐並非源自文人創作，而是「我固有之」。臺灣自清代以來，陸續出現11座以李鐵拐祖師為主祀神的道教廟宇，其來源包括原鄉迎奉、海漂撿拾、夢示、附體等不同情況，而對其身分之認識，則多受到《東遊記》、《歷代神仙演義》之影響，屬於「小說之教」的展現。而李鐵拐信仰可作為社會弱勢者的精神支持力量，具有正面價值，值得加以肯定，然其受小說之教影響，較未認知李鐵拐的道教本質，則是需要反思與加強之處。

In festive occasions of Chinese folk society, operas or decorations composed of the“Eight Immortals”often appear. Among the Eight Immortals, Wang Shizhen (王世貞, 1526-1590), a leader of scholars in the late Ming Dynasty, believed that the identities of the seven could be determined, but the one who was difficult to clarify was Li Tieguai (李鐵拐). Zhao Yi (趙翼, 1727-1814) even denied Li Tieguai’s authenticity because the official history books did not record him. However, Li Tieguai’s belief was introduced to Taiwan by immigrants from mainland China, and together with Lu Zu (呂祖), they became two of the“single main gods”of the Eight Immortals in Taiwan, which is worthy of study. This article uses literature research, on-site investigation, and in-depth interviews. Through this research, we can know that before Li Tieguai appeared in the Yuan Dynasty dramas and Ming Dynasty novels, the Jindan sect of Taoism in the Southern Song Dynasty had already recorded that God Donghua (東華帝君) was“surnamed Li”and identify Donghua with“the religious leader Tieguai Duxian”(鐵拐都仙教主). In the Qing Dynasty, there were two sects belonging to Quanzhen Taoism (全真道), and they had different definitions of Li Tieguai’s identity. Hence, it can be seen that the Taoist Li Tieguai did not originate from literary resources; but was the deity of Taoism itself. It is notable that since the Qing Dynasty, Taiwan has built 11 Taoist temples with Li Tieguai as the main god. The origins of these temples’s Li Tiequai include“being introduced from mainland China,”“fishing statues of gods drifting on the sea,”“receiving divine revelations in dreams,”“being possessed by gods,”etc. These temple’s believers’knowledge of Li Tieguai was influenced mainly by“Journey to the East”(《東遊記》) and“The Romance of Immortals of the Past”(《歷代神仙演義》), which is a manifestation of“the influence of novels.”It is concluded that Li Tieguai’s belief in Taiwan can serve as a spiritual support force for the disadvantaged in society. This function has positive value and deserves recognition. However, Li Tieguai’s believers’knowledge about this god was influenced mainly by the novels and did not comprehend the Taoist nature of Li Tieguai. Although this is a strong feature that needs to be recognized.